Midwest Independent Film Festival Presents "The Best of the Midwest Awards!" by guest blogger : jon landan, team rockit ranch

 I fortunately was introduced to “the arts” at a very early age.  While at Francis Parker School right here in the city of Chicago, I was exposed to some of the greatest talents, both in class and around the city, intriguing me so much I even pursued and landed a couple parts in plays like Oliver, Alice in Wonderland and The Music Man!  As I grew older and moved into other interests, I watched & supported friends from all over the city of Chicago work hard to further their artistic careers, taking classes at The Second City, hustling to improve through practice where ever possible, eventually showing that Chicago & the Midwest has some of the most talent in the country as many of the ones I watched over the years made it on to some of the biggest television shows and movies in Hollywood.

I also have enjoyed watching Hollywood come to us!  Recently it seems more than ever that Chicago and the Midwest have been the home to some of the biggest movies in the world from Batman: The Dark Knight to Johnny Depp’s Public Enemies. And if you think about it, these probably would not have been shot in Chicago & the Midwest without all the hard work done over the years by many of our own local independent film makers, actors, directors, crew… who have been drawing attention to our great part of the country for years!  For that, I think it is only right that we give back and support them, not only to continue to push forward, but to show the world how far we can take it and what we are really made of!

This local success, and more importantly their potential to make even a bigger impact on our behalf, has inspired me to get involved with The Midwest Independent Film Festival, the nation’s only film festival solely dedicated to the Midwest film industry, presenting audiences with regionally produced independent cinema. This film festival dedicated to celebrating and strengthening our film community is year round so you can enjoy at anytime, but I must suggest, all should get involved this week and attend the “BMAs!”  It’s a blast!

The “BMAs” are the “Best of The Midwest Awards” and will not only serve as an excellent opportunity for us to contribute to & support our local film industry, but it will be a great way to meet all that have excelled and represented us in the world of film & entertainment, like acclaimed filmmakers Lori Petty, John McNaughton and Steve Jones highlight the list of scheduled attendees!  See who else will be there on the 1st, including cohost for the evening, our CEO, Billy Dec  —  and check out last year’s photo gallery! 

The event will be this Tuesday, December 1st at Rockit Bar & Grill, 22 W. Hubbard, kicking off w/a fun cocktail reception at 7 p.m.  The Best of the Midwest Awards ceremony takes place from 8:00-9:00 p.m.; festivities continue through 10 p.m.  info and ticket/donation are available at www.midwestfilm.org; all proceeds benefit the 2010 Midwest Independent Film Festival…. Let’s support them! (and us!)